In France, a parliamentary commission will soon meet to investigate whether to ban any cloak that covers most of the face. WUSTL anthropology professor John Bowen, who wrote "Why the French Don't Like Headscarves: Islam, the State and Public Space," has been asked to testify by the parliamentary commission.

References:

1. Sept. 1, 2009 — Burqa Furor Scrambles French Politics in the The New York Times

and 2 others.

Yoshio Matsumoto was among the 110,000 Japanese-Americans seemingly bound for an internment camp soon after America entered World War II when WUSTL agreed to take him in.

References:

1. Aug. 31, 2009 — Japanese-American graduate recalls wartime ordeal in the Associated Press

and 42 others.

Nancy Benac reports on Obama's Cairo speech in which he tried to explain the American mindset to Muslims and the world of Islam to Americans. Various experts comment on the speech, including WUSTL presidential rhetoric specialist Wayne Fields.

References:

1. June 6, 2009 — Analysis: Obama tries evenhanded approach in the Associated Press

and 51 others.

When it comes to swine flu, Obama is trying to strike the right balance between protecting public and economic health. That's resulted in some doublespeak and spin, evidence of the inextricable ties between a looming epidemic and a listing economy. Includes comments by WUSTL American culture studies director Wayne Fields, who is an expert on presidential rhetoric.

References:

1. May 2, 2009 — Flu control tests Obama balancing skills in the Associated Press

and 47 others.

President Obama has gotten off to a busy start, fielding more questions in formal press conferences in his first months in office than the American people saw from his predecessor. WUSTL history professor Peter Kastor comments.

References:

1. April 28, 2009 — Obama takes more questions than Bush in the The Washington Times

The U.S. and China are exploring new ways to bridge U.S. moon exploration plans with China. Includes comments from WUSTL earth and planetary sciences professor Ray Arvidson.

References:

1. April 16, 2009 — U.S. Astronauts Might Hitch Rides on Chinese Spacecraft in the Space.com

A Web site funded by a grant from the state of Texas, allows people around the world to watch the U.S./Mexico border for illegal activity. WUSTL immigration law professor Stephen Legomsky comments.

References:

1. March 12, 2009 — Guarding the U.S.-Mexico border, live from suburban New York in the CNN.com

and 1 others.

The arrest warrant for Sudan's president for war crimes is indicative of the mounting pressure on the International Criminal Court to show results. Includes comments by WUSTL law professor Leila Nadya Sadat, who was a delegate to the diplomatic conference at which the ICC was established.

References:

1. March 6, 2009 — Briefing: A rocky start for war crimes world court in the The Christian Science Monitor

WUSTL chancellor Mark S. Wrighton is trying to establish meaningful relationships with foreign universities, in hopes of engaging large numbers of WUSTL students and faculty members, encouraging robust research collaborations, and cultivating a more global campus.

References:

1. Feb. 27, 2009 — U.S. Colleges Get Serious With Partners Overseas in the The Chronicle of Higher Education

A UBS memo, along with dozens of e-mail messages like it, were disclosed on Thursday in a blistering court document filed by the Justice Department, which sought to compel UBS, based in Switzerland, to divulge the identities of 52,000 Americans whom the authorities suspect of using secret offshore accounts at the bank to dodge taxes. WUSTL criminal and securities law professor Samuel Buell, who helped to prosecute Enron, comments.

References:

1. Feb. 20, 2009 — UBS Pressed for 52,000 Names in 2nd Inquiry in the The New York Times

and 7 others.

Two Kenyan brothers are in this country studying to be doctors. They are also fulfilling their father's dream of building a clinic in their remote home village to fight AIDS, the disease that killed both of their parents. Milton Ochieng is a resident at WUSTL's medical school. Fred is at Vanderbilt.

References:

1. Feb. 8, 2009 — Fulfilling a father's dream in the CNN Newsroom (national)

The "War on Terror" is losing the war of words. The catchphrase burned into the American lexicon hours after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, is fading away, slowly if not deliberately being replaced by a new administration bent on repairing the U.S. image among Muslim nations. Includes comments by WUSTL English and American culture studies professor Wayne Fields, who is an expert on presidential rhetoric.

References:

1. Feb. 1, 2009 — Under Obama, 'war on terror' catchphrase fading in the Associated Press

and 18 others.

In a Dec. 8th news conference in Hong Kong, twenty-five premier research universities from around the world, including WUSTL, announced the establishment of the Consortium for Clean Coal Utilization to promote research and applications of clean coal technology.

References:

1. Dec. 9, 2008 — Story on the establishment of the Consortium for Clean Coal Utilization in the Xinhua News Agency (China)

and 11 others.

The Center for a New American Security, a small think tank here with generally middle-of-the-road policy views, is rapidly emerging as a top farm team for the incoming Obama administration. Includes comments by WUSTL economics professor Murray Weidenbaum, who wrote a book on Washington think tanks.

References:

1. Nov. 16, 2008 — Obama Dips Into Think Tank for Talent in the The Wall Street Journal online

Immigrants seeking asylum in the United States have been disproportionately rejected by judges whom the Bush administration chose using a conservative political litmus test, according to an analysis of Justice Department data. WUSTL immigration law professor Stephen Legomsky comments.

References:

1. Aug. 23, 2008 — Vetted Judges More Likely to Reject Asylum Bids in the The New York Times

and 8 others.

Robots are increasingly taking over more soldier duties in Iraq and Afghanistan, with predictions that as much as 30 percent of the U.S. Army will be robotic by 2020. Two WUSTL scientists, Bill Smart and Doug Few, are on the cutting edge of this new wave of technology.

References:

1. Aug. 4, 2008 — Military use of robots increases in U.S. in the Xinhua News Agency (China)

and 2 others.

Corrupt Afghan officials, a reluctant military and divisions over policy, as much as the Taliban, have contributed to a failing policy to fight narcotics in Afghanistan, a former Bush administration official writes in an article in The New York Times Magazine on Sunday. The author, Thomas Schweich, was the senior counternarcotics official in the U.S. Embassy in Kabul for two years. He is now a visiting professor of law at WUSTL.

References:

1. July 24, 2008 — Bush Ex-Official Says Corrupt Afghans and a Hesitant Military Hinder Drug Fight in the The New York Times

Add one more contest to the spectacles on show during the Beijing Olympic Games -- the national protest hurdle.
With China's leaders demanding that none of the nation's simmering unrest upset the Games, officials have launched an onslaught of checks to stop aggrieved citizens reaching Beijing.
WUSTL law professor Carl Minzner comments.

References:

1. July 21, 2008 — China's discontented challenge Olympic hurdles in the Boston Globe

and 15 others.

The Beijing Olympics begin in just over three weeks, and the Chinese are trying to clear the air. In a recent test, Beijing's air failed to meet international health guidelines six days out of seven. WUSTL chemical engineering professor Jay Turner comments.

References:

1. July 15, 2008 — China trying different things to improve air quality for Olympics in the CBS Evening News

WUSTL political science professor Andrew Mertha, author of a book on Chinese dams, "China's Water Warriors: Citizen Action and Policy Change," comments on the aftermath of the Chinese earthquake.

References:

1. May 16, 2008 — China: Quake death toll could reach 50,000 in the Associated Press

and 23 others.